5 Things to Know About the ‘Pretty Little Liars’ Halloween Episode

Previous Halloween episodes of “Pretty Little Liars” have featured flashbacks to Alison’s last Halloween and Adam Lambert performing on a train. This year, the show is topping itself with a game-changing episode that leads into the premiere of the “PLL” spin-off, “Ravenswood.” Our heroines attend Ravenswood’s Founders’ Day Party in the hopes of finally discovering the truth about Alison’s death. What they don’t know is that Ezra, revealed to be “A” in last summer’s finale, is also attending.

xfinityTV was on hand when the cast and producers previewed the episode’s shocking revelations and revealed how the events that transpire will set up the second half of the season.

Alison’s Fate Will Be Revealed
The investigation of Alison’s murder has had enough red herrings to populate an entire aquarium. During the Halloween episode, a big piece of the puzzle will finally be revealed. “You do get a fairly definitive answer [about Alison],” executive producer Joseph Dougherty promises. Executive producer Oliver Goldsmith teases, “The Alison story is a game-changing revelation which will make the girls ask some different questions and, of course, Ezra’s tied into that as well. You might learn some stuff you won’t believe. You’ll go, ‘Oh my God. They planted this and we should have seen it. Why am I so stupid? I should have known this in episode five when he was hiding what was in his drawer from Aria. I should have known this.”

Learning the truth about Alison will have an especially big impact on Spencer. Troiann Bellasario revealed, “You get to learn why wasn’t she with the rest of the girls when they woke up? Why was she awake to hear Alison scream? As we go through the season, you’re hearing a lot more about the night in question and Spencer’s state and why she wasn’t with the girls and why she had a fight with Alison.” She added that, during the Halloween episode, “Spencer gets a one-on-one with a very bad guy and she kicks butt.”

It’s an Homage to 1950s Horror Movies
Last year’s Halloween episode referenced Alfred Hitchcock and Agatha Christie. This season, “PLL” is a tribute to Hammer films, a series of classic British horror movies. Goldsmith explained, “They were sort of studio made, they’re contained, there are haunted houses, a lot of statues that come to life, things like that, there will be a lot of allusions in this episode to the great classic horror films of the late ’50s and early ’60s. The costuming, however, is 1918. It’s not the ’50s because the party they’re going to is a World War I extravaganza, Armistice Day.”

Spencer Goes Rosewood Psycho
Spencer’s downward spiral in the second half of the season will lead her down a dark path. ”In actually finding out what happened to Alison she becomes completely obsessed in a new way and she takes all of the investigation on herself and it’s a huge load on top of college applications and trying to maintain friendships and relationships, and she turns to really, really unhealthy habits to try to get it done and it takes her down a road that reveals a secret that not even the girls or anybody knows about Spencer,” says Bellasario. “I shot something the other night that I will give you a hint. I would say it was a very Patrick Bateman moment for Spencer. It’s not like Huey Lewis was playing in the background, but she definitely got messy.”

Hanna and Caleb Try to Go the Distance
With Caleb (Tyler Blackburn) moving to “Ravenswood,” Hanna (Ashley Benson) and Caleb find themselves in a long-distance relationship. Goldstick shares, “It will be a little bit strained. She visits and he visits. The first five episodes only took place over a couple of weeks. So it’s not like they’ll be separated for a year. It may feel like it to the fans, but it’s not. They’re communicating by Internet and phone and they’ll visit each other. Those visits are very fraught.”

Ezra and Aria Might Not Be Over
Both Mona and Toby were previously revealed to be “A,” only to have it turn out not to be true. The producers insist that Ezra (Ian Harding) really is the villain he appears to be in the finale. “I’ll just tell you, it’s not a fake out. We won’t do that to the audience again. Just stay with us,” promises Goldstick. “There are revelations. There will be more revelations and just because we’ve revealed something doesn’t mean you know all about it. There are layers to things and there are reasons and there are stories behind stories. There’s more to be learned,” hints Dougherty. “In other words, Ezra and Aria fans should not mourn the demise of their favorite couple. “Just be patient for a little longer because we have to tell a story. We have to get on the ride,” says Goldstick. “Stay with the show. I think you’ll be satisfied.”

The “Pretty Little Liars” Halloween special airs Tuesday at 8/7c on ABC Family.